Cory Costa Takes Modified Glory Saturday Evening At The Woodhull Raceway

Story By: ROBERT SYMONDS / WOODHULL RACEWAY – WOODHULL, NY – As the points championship season starts to wind down at the High Banks of the Woodhull Raceway, the chase of the championship starts to heat up.

The glory of a first championship looms in the balance while others look to repeat. All eight classes were ready to roll on Schweigart’s Maple Equipment night with the Woodhull Auto Supply Hobby Stocks, the Johnson’s Auto Supply Front Wheel Drives, and the Big Jim’s Wicked Tees Woodhull Warriors making up features from last week’s Pepsi Night rainout.

First up on the schedule was the Insinger Performance Modifieds. Billy Van Pelt and Joe Dgien dominated heat races for wins then Dgien would turn around and lead the field to the green with Donnie Lawson on the outside pole. Dgien would lead the opening laps while Ryan Tracy and Cory Costa get by Lawson to take the other top 3 spots. Clearly a problem was occurring with the Lawson Sawyer’s Mobile RV Repair 11 as he was uncharacteristically outside of the top five within a couple of laps. Ken Titus moved past Brady Fultz and Lawson to put himself into fifth while Costa gained momentum to close in on Dgien for the race lead. Costa made the topside work in turns 3 and 4 to barely take the lead on lap 5. Mike Bills worked by Ryan Tracy to take over position 3 while Van Pelt was working his way up from the rear of the field to battle with Josh Nobriga for sixth. Titus was able to work by Tracy on the bottom to take over fourth while Van Pelt cleared Nobriga and started to use the bottom lane on Tracy when the yellow flag would fly for Lawson as he had issues with his rear tire. On the restart, Van Pelt was able to get by Titus and get to the back bumper of both Bills and Dgien. The caution flag would fly again for Sam Allen as he had issues on his A11. Problems with the Herrington Motorsports driver Mike Bills would see him heading pitside and surrendering his top 3 run. The restart was good for Van Pelt as he used the cushion in turns one and two to work by Dgien for second. Soon after, Dgien had issues aboard his 3x as he would come to a stop atop of turn 4. With just a handful of laps to go, Costa was able to pull away from Van Pelt to earn his second win of the year with Titus finishing 3rd, Nobriga fourth, and Potrzebowski II rounding out the top 5.

Second on the schedule was the Cummings Trucking RUSH Late Models. John Waters and Chris Fleming took heat race wins. Joe Layfield and Jason Knowles led the field to the green. Layfield led lap 1 with both Waters and Knowles in close tow while Horton holds down the fourth spot over Jim Buck. Waters made the move on the outside of Layfield to take the lead on lap 2 and Knowles would do the same in turns 1 and 2 but he wouldn’t be able to make the pass until the exit of turn 4. Issues with Jason McGregor in turn 4 would see the yellow flag for the first time. Kurt Stebbins is able to make the best out of the restart as he challenged John Haggerty for the fifth spot however was never able to make a pass. McGregor was able to get past Stebbins on the bottom to take over sixth and on the exit of turn 4 a couple of laps later, Stebbins would be facing the wrong way which would draw the caution. The restart would see a four car battle for third between Layfield, Buck, Haggerty, and McGregor. Meanwhile a battle for the lead was brewing between Knowles and Waters. Knowles was full aside Waters for the lead for nearly a full lap when the yellow flag would slow the field for the final time. With only two laps remaining, Knowles was not able to fully regain the run he needed and Waters would capture his second win of the year over Knowles, Layfield, Buck, and Haggerty.

The third feature was the makeup for the Woodhull Auto Supply Hobby Stocks. Bringing us back to green was Carter Dennis with 11 laps remaining. Jeredd Dennis immediately went to the top side to hold down the second spot while Mike Spencer controlled the bottom groove behind Carter Dennis for third. Spencer would get tight with only a handful of laps to go and that would allow Scott Brown to take the spot on the bottom. Chris Woodard and Les Smith would also sneak by Spencer to take fourth and fifth. Scott Brown was able to use the bottom to take second away from Jeredd Dennis but it wouldn’t be enough to catch Carter Dennis as he would get his second win of the year in the Pepsi Night makeup feature over Scott Brown, Jeredd Dennis, Chris Woodard, and Les Smith.

Next up was the Johnson’s Auto Supply Front Wheel Drives for their Pepsi Night Makeup feature. Jacob McConnell and Matt Prescott led the field to green. On the opening lap, McConnell would fight a tight car and would allow Codie Baker to take the lead after starting third. Scott Lehman Jr would work the bottom lane to take the third spot away from Prescott while Nate Freeland and
Adam Delgrosso worked their way up to fifth and sixth. Just as that happened, Delgrosso would make it a two for one special as he got by both Freeland and Prescott to put himself into fourth. Delgrosso once again made the bottom groove work, this time on Lehman Jr to put himself into third and would quickly close in on McConnell. In the closing laps Delgrosso was able to get by McConnell for second while Freeland gets by Lehman Jr for fourth as Baker would get the win for the Pepsi Night Makeup Feature as the Johnson’s Auto Supply Front Wheel Drives ran a green to checked 6 minute 40 second feature.

The final makeup feature from Pepsi Night was the Big Jim’s Wicked Tees Woodhull Warriors. Leading the field for the 10 lap feature was Bradly Morseman and Keegan Smith. At the start, Morseman would spin and draw the caution for a complete restart. Smith would take the lead for the mean time while Marshall O’Brian and Jacob Tubbs would battle for second. Leading the opening lap however was Jacob Tubbs but only a nose as Smith and O’Brian would get tight in turn 4. Ethan Decker and Levi Riley battled side by side for third as the caution flag would fly for the first time for debris on the speedway. On the restart, Riley would battle with Smith for second and Riley would get the spot. While O’Brian, Decker, and Jordan Costley battled for third, the caution would come out for the final time. On the restart, Riley gave Tubbs a shot at the lead but it wouldn’t be enough as Tubbs would win the Pepsi Night Makeup feature over Riley, O’Brian, Costley, and Smith.

Back to the Schweigarts Sugar Shack and Maple Equipment night features. Next up was the NAPA Crate Sportsman. The heat races were won by Kreg Crooker, Kenny Peoples Jr, and Cole Youse. AJ Costley and Dale Welty led the field to green. Costley led the opening lap with Welty up on the top side. The top groove would work for Welty for a couple of laps however Youse would take over second while Ted Morseman and Kreg Crooker close in on Welty. Youse was able to work alongside Costley on the bottom groove to take the lead on lap four while Morseman got around Welty to take third. Goodier and Crooker would follow suit as well as they got around Welty to move up a spot. A yellow would slow the field but on the restart, Costley would get tight on the exit of turn four which would put himself and Morseman behind the eight ball. That would play into the hands of Goodier and Crooker as they would gain not two but three positions. Two drivers had some incredible runs as they made their way through the field, AJ Potrzebowski was up inside the top ten after starting fourteenth while Bob Butcher was also inside the top ten after starting last. Meanwhile Crooker was able to narrowly work his way by Goodier for second then start to close in on Youse for the lead while the pair enter lap traffic. Working their way through lap traffic on the bottom, Youse and Crooker still battled for the lead until a spinning car would end both their nights. Youse would leave the race with a broken chassis while Crooker had a mechanical failure with his front end. With only a couple of laps remaining, Art Goodier would pull away from the field and cruise to his first win of 2020 over Welty, Potrzebowski, Morseman, and Connor Brown.

The Joe Willcox Performance Automatics Street Stocks would take over the racing surface next after Glenn Whritenour and Mick Seeley won heat races. Dan Gardner and Mike Williams would be the two drivers at the front of the field as the race commenced. Gardner led the opening lap while Brandon Birdsall, Kurt Stebbins, and Brett Marlatt got around the Williams machine. Marlatt would get around Birdsall to put himself into third while Stebbins would take the lead on lap 3. Gardner would have issues in turn 2 and spin to draw the first caution. On the restart, Morseman and Whritenour quickly moved up to third and fourth while Stebbins and Marlatt fought for the lead. However Morseman would have an issue in the 1* as he came to a stop in turn 4, draw the caution but this would end his night early. Back to green, Marlatt would move up the track and that would open the door for Whritenour. Stebbins would do the same to let both Whritenour and Marlatt by as those two would battle for the lead. Marlatt got the bottom groove back under his control and would do what no driver has done this season, pass Whritenour for the lead. However the lead would not last long as the caution would fly for Stebbins in an issue with his Cummings Trucking 26. On the restart, Marlatt was able to pull away by a couple car lengths as Brett Crawford worked through the field passing both Birdsall and Luke Boom to enter third. Soon after, Marlatt’s tires would end up going away which allowed Whritenour to get back by on the bottom and he would cruise his way to Victory Lane over Marlatt, Crawford, Boom, Birdsall.

Big Jim’s Wicked Tees Mini Stocks took to the track next as Travis Webster and Jason Ketrow took heat race victories while Brody Amidon and Josh Webster led the field to Tony Van Pelt’s green flag. Amidon would lead the opening lap while Webster ran second, Hyer and Ketrow side by side for third and Tyler Houghtaling running fifth. The first caution flag would slow the field but on the restart, they would come back to life. Jason Warner and Travis Webster are able to pass Houghtaliing to move up into the top five while Hyer puts pressure on Josh Webster for second. Hyer is able to get second while Travis Webster gets around Ketrow for fourth and makes it a three car battle for second. Ketrow gets into the back bumper of Warner in turn 4 which would cause the car to spin and come to a stop to draw the caution on lap 10. Tiptoeing on the bottom for the restart, the Webster boys trade spots putting Travis to third and Josh back to fourth. Warner gets momentum on Josh Webster to work around him for fourth. Travis worked his way up to the bottom side of Hyer. He would get by but then has a bad corner which put him back to third again. Though no one was able to catch Brody Amidon as he would get his second win of the year over Hyer, Travis Webster, Warner, and Josh Webster.

The Big Jim’s Wicked Tees Woodhull Warriors would come out next for the Schweigart’s Sugar Shack and Maple Equipment night feature. Jacob Tubbs would win the 6 lap heat event as Jordan Costley and Keegan Smith led the field to green. As we do, Costley takes the lead into turn one as Marshall O’Brian blocks the bottom lane to stop the advance of Jacob Tubbs while Levi Riley and Keegan Smith were on the outside of him. Tubbs would take it easy in turns 1 and 2 and take the race lead down the back stretch. Riley tried to work his way underneath O’Brian but would get into the left rear and both would spin in turn four. On the restart, Tubbs pulled away from the rest of the field while Costley and Smith battled for second. In turn 3 however, the left front tire would come right off the Costley machine which would cause the car to come to a stop and draw the yellow. Back underway, Ethan Decker would run the bottom and try to close in on Smith for second while Bradly Morseman and Jaden Stone ran fourth and fifth respectively. Decker would be able to get by Smith on the bottom groove but no one would be able to catch Tubbs as he would go two for two on the night.

The Woodhull Auto Supply Hobby Stocks would come out for their second feature of the night, this time for the Schweigart’s Maple Equipment nightly feature. Chris Woodard and Les Smith took home heat race wins while Scott Brown and Smith would lead the field to the green. Brown would take over the lead while Smith was trying to hold back Mike Spencer’s advance on the bottom groove. Yellow would come out for the first time for Jimmy Hollister stopped in turn 1 which would slow the field. Back underway, Spencer would around in front of the field to collect Dick Wallace and Lee Bills. This would give Mike Carapella the third spot for the restart on lap 4 however it would stick long as Jeredd Dennis and Chris Woodard would make their way around on the back stretch putting Carapella back to 5th. A lane change to try and block the top lane would be a mistake for Smith as that would open the door for Jeredd Dennis to get by. Woodard would also follow in the same path as Dennis to get by Smith. Leo Eldridge and Bill Williams have worked their way up to 5th and 6th to challenge Smith for fourth. Carter Dennis would do the same after coming from the back twice. Williams was able to work his way by Eldridge but not able to challenge Smith for fourth. Woodard fought valiantly on the top side of Jeredd Dennis but was not able to make a pass. Scott Brown would win his second of the year over Jeredd Dennis, Chris Woodard, Bill Williams, and Leo Eldridge as Les Smith was disqualified for denying post-race inspection.

The final feature of the night was the Johnson’s Auto Supply Front Wheel Drives. Codie Baker and Jacob McConnell win heat race events while Kevin Williams and Adam Delgrosso led the field to green. Delgrosso would quickly assume the lead down the back stretch while Garrett Wilson and Nate Freeland move up to second and third. Wesley Houghtaling worked the outside of Williams and both Matt Prescott and Codie Baker worked the bottom lane. Baker moved up to fourth around Prescott as Freeland closed in on Wilson for second. Baker would quickly close in on both Wilson and Freeland to make a three car battle. Freeland would be the first to get by on the bottom then Baker would follow suit. Baker would get by Freeland on the entrance of turn 1 after using the lap car of Mclain as a pick to put him up to second. Issues with Wilson would end his evening early and put Prescott and Houghtaling up to the top 5. Delgrosoo would have a half track advantage as he took the race win over Baker, Freeland, Prescott, and Houghtaling.

Woodhull Raceway Results – August 22, 2020 – Schweigart’s Sugar Shack & Maple Equipment Night

Insinger Performance Modifieds (15 cars)

Heats: Billy Van Pelt, Joe Dgien

Feature (25 laps): CORY COSTA, Billy Van Pelt, Ken Titus, Josh Nobriga, Ajay Potrzebowski II, Brady Fultz, Dayton Brewer, Donnie Lawson, Tony Pangrazio, Brian Doolittle, Mike Bills, Greg Turner, Sheldon Gardner, Ryan Tracy, Joe Dgien, Sam Allen

Cummings Trucking RUSH Late Models (11 cars)

Heats: John Waters, Chris Fleming

Feature (20 laps): JOHN WATERS, Jason Knowles, Joe Layfield, Jim Buck, John Haggerty, Darin Horton, Jason McGregor, Chris Fleming, Chuck LaFleur, Kurt Stebbins, Steve LeBarron

NAPA Crate Sportsman (24 cars)

Heats: Kreg Crooker, Kenny Peoples Jr, Cole Youse

Feature (25 laps): ART GOODIER, Dale Welty, Ajay Potrzebowski, Teddy Morseman, Connor Brown, Kenny Peoples Jr, Bob Butcher, Blake Lawson, Greg Crooker, AJ Costley, Carter Crooker, Aiden Grover, Will Wood, Justin Schenck, Dylan Gilbert, Adam Taft, Cayden Lawson, Cole Youse, Kreg Crooker, Isabel Barron, Danielle Thomas, Christian Zschoche, Noah Talada, Matt Sullivan, Reese Hackett

Woodhull Auto Supply Hobby Stocks (16 cars)

8/15 Pepsi Night Makeup Feature (20 Laps): CARTER DENNIS, Scott Brown, Jeredd Dennis, Chris Woodard, Les Smith, Mike Spencer, Zach Kriner, Dick Wallace, Leo Eldridge, Mike Carapella, Jimmy Hollister, Bill Williams, AJ Neidermaier, Brent Williams, Matt Sullivan, Riley Gordon, Jim Sargent

Heats: Chris Woodard, Les Smith

Feature (20 laps): SCOTT BROWN, Jeredd Dennis, Chris Woodard, Bill Williams, Leo Eldridge, Carter Dennis, Mike Spencer, Zach Kriner, Jimmy Hollister, Mike Carapella, Dick Wallace, Nathan Kriner, Lee Bills, Dennis Loucks

DQ (refused tech)- Les Smith

DNS- Brent Williams

Joe Willcox Performance Automatics Street Stocks (11 cars)

Heats: Glenn Whritenour, Mick Seeley

Feature (20 laps): GLENN WHRITENOUR, Brett Marlatt, Brett Crawford, Luke Boom, Brandon Birdsall, Mike Williams, Mick Seeley, Joe Birdsall, Kurt Stebbins, Dan Gardner, Ted Morseman

Big Jim’s Wicked Tees Woodhull Warriors (8 cars)

8/15 Pepsi Night Makeup Feature (10 Laps): JACOB TUBBS, Levi Riley, Marshall O’Brian, Jordan Costley, Keegan Smith, Bradly Morseman, Ethan Decker, Jaden Stone

Heat: Jacob Tubbs

Feature (10 laps): JACOB TUBBS, Ethan Decker, Keegan Smith, Bradly Morseman, Jaden Stone, Jordan Costley, Marshall O’Brian, Levi Riley

Johnson’s Auto Supply Front Wheel Drives (13 cars)

8/15 Pepsi Night Makeup Feature (20 Laps): CODIE BAKER, Adam Delgrosso, Jacob McConnell, Nate Freeland, Scott Lehman Jr, Matt Prescott, Garrett Wilson, Kenneth Evans, Travis Southard, Todd Mclain

DNS- Tom Childs

Heats: Codie Baker, Jacob McConnell

Feature (20 laps): ADAM DELGROSSO, Codie Baker, Nate Freeland, Matt Prescott, Wesley Houghtaling, Jeffery Lafler, Todd Mclain, Kevin Williams, Garrett Wilson, Kenneth Evans, Scott Lehman Jr

Big Jim’s Wicked Tees Mini Stocks (11 cars)

Heats: Travis Webster, Jason Ketrow

Feature (20 laps): BRODY AMIDON, Ray Hyer, Travis Webster, Jason Warner, Josh Webster, Jason Ketrow, Scott Lehman, Tyler Houghtaling, Dana Stephens, Richard Harding, Dylon Morseman